Christians who rejected ecclesiastical hierarchy and who practised a form of apostolic poverty

Preached without official licence, and translated scripture and liturgical texts into the vernacular

In 1170, Valdes renounced worldly affairs and took to preaching the Gospel in vernacular and living strictly by its precepts

Valdes' unlicensed preaching, not approved by local clerical authority, which was specifically outlawed in papal bull Ad abolendam of 1184

Valdes' criticism of clergy that marks him out as heretical, as opposed to his beliefs about Creation and incarnation of Christ

Waldensian profession of faith distances suspected heretic from key traits of dualism (dualism a key part of Catharism)

Like Cathars, Waldensian brothers and sisters struck a chord with southern European laity

Like Cathars, Waldensians practised personal poverty and women had relatively high profile

Waldensians came to reject all violence, even judicial, and by early C13th they too denied authority of unworthy clergy almost as far as being 'Donatists (believing sacraments cannot be performed adequately by priests who have sinned)

Cathars believe sacraments are meaningless

By 1190s, Waldensians were established in many small towns of Languedoc, openly preaching, their leading lights inlcding Peter of Les Vals, and anathema was pronounced against them at Fourth Lateran Council in 1215